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29 December 2010

Oh, I would LOVE to have a round room like that in the corner of my home. Of course, it has to have a domed ceiling and a few porthole windows.

I acutually prefer living on the ground level with a bakcyard to living in a 5th- or 6th-floor apartment. But apartment living would be much more tolerable if I had a lovely balcony, where I could sit sipping my coffee while watching the hustle and bustle of down below.

I also wouldn't mind having a dark and narrow tower like this as one of the features of my home. I would slowly and cautiously walk up and down the tightly wound stairs with only a small candle for my light.

All these buildings are in Lyon. First two are in Presqu'île; the last one in Vieux Lyon by the Metro Vieux Lyon station (I think it's part of the Bibliothèque 5eme). Aren't they delicious????

20 December 2010

These photos are from last year's snowstorm, several days before Christmas.

I was scheduled to fly out, alone, to go to the other side of the world. To say good-bye to somebody. Some of the airports in Europe were starting to shut down because of the weather, and others were limiting flights departing and arriving. I sat in front of my living room window, looking at the thick snow curtains and wondering if mine would be departing as scheduled.

But I wasn't worried. The snow kept falling, erasing my worries as it fell, whispering, "It's okay. Whatever will be, will be." My flight did leave on time, and after 24 hours, I got where I needed to be.

A year has gone by since then.

A whole year gone by. I am exactly one year older, but am I wiser? Am I a better person now than I was last year? Did I learn? Did I give?

11 December 2010

07 December 2010

On December 24, 1968, the fourth flight day of Apollo 8, the first human mission to orbit the Moon, after reestablishing radio contact with mission control in Houston, command module pilot Jim Lovell replied to CAPCOM Ken Mattingly's attempt to reestablish contact, saying, "Roger. Please be informed there is a Santa Claus," to which Mattingly responded, "That's affirmative, you're the best ones to know."

03 December 2010

It started to come down really hard as I was driving to pick E up at school. When I got there, the bell had not rung yet but all the students were at the building entrance, ready to be picked up and taken home as quickly as possible. It was clear that this was turning into a major weather/road condition, and the school staff wanted to make sure everyone went home safely. God bless these people.

We walked back to the car to find it covered with a few inches of snow, just in the 20 minutes I had left it parked. The ice scraper that we never took out of the car after our ski trip last Februay -- well, I was really glad we never took it out of the car.

Driving home wasn't fun, but we got home safely and that's all that mattered. I made a pot of hot chocolate immediately. Home is a good place to be, especially when there's a snow storm raging outside. We have heat, we have food, and we have clothes to keep us warm. How lucky we are.

The school was closed on Wednesday. E had a few friends to play with and a foot of snow to play in.